In United Grand Lodge of England v HMRC [2021] UKFTT 308 (TC) (1 September 2021) the First-tier Tribunal held that membership fees charged to freemasons were not exempt from VAT.
The United Grand Lodge of England (UGLE) is the governing body for most freemasons in England and Wales and it accounts for VAT on the membership fee charged to its members.
UGLE submitted a previous claim to HMRC in 2013 on the basis that the membership fees between 1973 and 1996 should have been exempt from VAT. HMRC refused the claim and the taxpayer appealed to the tribunal. The tribunal dismissed the appeal. However the tribunal did comment in reaching its decision that since 2000 the activities undertaken by the appellant had changed to become more involved in charitable work and these comments encouraged UGLE to submit a further claim to HMRC for overpaid VAT for the...
